Black Babydoll and Lace
by musicnotes093
Summary: Tim meets a bully from his high school days when he accompanies Ziva shopping. McGiva.


**Title:** _"Black Babydoll and Lace"_

**Rating:** FR15/ T

**Written as NFA Hangman Prize for:** Oxymoronic Alliteration =D

**Pairing:** McGee/Ziva

**Summary:** Tim meets a bully from his high school days when he accompanies Ziva shopping.

**Notes:** The prompt given to me was Tim/Ziva/shopping! ^_^ Enjoy, everyone!

**DISCLAIMER:** Anything publicly recognizable is not mine. :)

* * *

Tim swiveled his head from left to right to watch the other shoppers stream past the halls of the mall. He noticed that most of them were teenage girls, all chatting loudly with their group of friends as they strolled. Some were young lovers, promenading as if they were the only people there and the establishment were theirs to explore. There were also a few older people sitting at the benches, keenly observing others like he was.

Nonetheless, it made him a bit uncomfortable. He thought he was. . .out of place.

Ziva, when she glanced back at him, read his thoughts by the soft frown on his features and the restless shifting of his sling-bound right arm. "You know," she began, "you did not have to come with me to the mall, Tim."

"Oh, I. . ." Tim stammered, a bit disarmed by her statement. "I have to, Ziva. You know that. I can't let you be by yourself, especially not with what happened last week."

"As far as I remember, the person who tried to kill me is already in jail," Ziva replied. She stopped in her tracks, causing Tim to do the same. She turned around with a smile on her lips. "Plus, you have saved me once," she said, placing a hand on his sling, "and that is enough."

"Well—" Tim hurried after Ziva. "You can never be so sure. What if he has an accomplice to finish you off? He did seem really angry with you, and I'm sure he'd want to take his vengeance—"

"Tim," Ziva turned around once more. "Go home. I appreciate your determination to protect me, but if you get shot again, I would not be able to bear it in my conscience. And you're exhausted. I could tell."

"It was a flash wound," Tim amended seconds after Ziva had walked away from him, "and I can wait until I get back to the apartment. I'll just sleep then."

Ziva sighed when she heard his footsteps close behind her. Tim could be so obstinate at times, she thought. She didn't know how she could make him understand that she could manage by herself and that she really didn't want him to be hurt anymore. Especially not because of her enemies.

So, she decided that, since Tim would not depart from her even if she told him to, she had to force him to leave. She spotted a particular store, one arrayed with gold, white, and various shades of pink. Perfect. Tim would have a difficult time going in there.

Ziva turned into the shop not long after. Tim, on the other hand, was cemented on the entrance as he saw the merchandises inside and the golden letters arranged above.

Ziva smirked when she saw the uncertain expression on his face. "What is the matter, Tim?" she asked slyly.

"Nothing," Tim replied, still indecisive whether he should come in or not. "It's just that. . ."

"You are surprised that I shop at Victoria's Secret?" she inquired. When Tim's eyes fell on her, she waggled her eyebrows. She grinned when he appeared more confused. "If you want to, you can just give me back my shopping bags. You may go home; I will be fine by myself."

Tim shook his head. "No. I'll. . . I'll stay with you."

Ziva shrugged. "Alright," she said, heading towards the lingerie section at the back. "Suit yourself."

With Ziva gone, Tim found it harder to step forward. He thought it was tenfold more awkward that he was the only man in the store, and added to that was the embarrassment he derived from the curious glances thrown at him by the women inside. He decided to ignore them by observing the store—which, he found out, was not the best idea. The photographs of supermodels wearing nothing but their underwear—or, for some, sporting a provocative nightwear—made him blush. Picking up the soft scents that awakened his sensations did not help, either.

Turning on his heels, he determined that he would just wait for his companion outside. However, before he did, he heard a familiar voice that struck through his memory and made him feel a hundred times smaller.

"Geeky McGee, is that you?"

Tim clenched his jaws, wishing that he had never come into that store. Ziva, when she heard the shouted term, peaked from behind a rack, wondering what the commotion was about.

"Connor," Tim braved up and turned around to greet the high school bully he knew by heart.

The tall, bulky man grinned. He slapped his calloused hand on Tim's right shoulder, which elicited a groan from the young man. "Oh," Connor drew back his hand from the reaction. "Still too fragile, I see. What'd you do, anyways? Fall off the escalator?" he asked, and then laughed smugly.

Tim chuckled nervously. "Yeah. Yeah, no," he replied. "I just ran into trouble at work, that's all."

Connor nodded pensively. "Alright," he said. "Hey. How have you been? From the last thing I've heard from people, you've fulfilled your dreams by landing on your dream job! You're a. . .tech person for a computer shop, right? Raymond said so."

"Actually, I'm a federal officer," Tim blurted out in his defense, but regretted it afterwards.

"Oh. A federal officer? Way to go, Geeky McGee! All guns, hot girls and car chases, huh?" Connor grinned approvingly. "Man. That's way better than in high school. You were all books, imaginary prom dates and, well, running away from us before we can do you a swirlie." He chuckled.

Tim smiled weakly. He recalled those days, but he couldn't honestly say that much had changed. His job wasn't even that far from what Raymond described it was. He _was_ the 'tech guy' of the team. Who his former tormentor gloriously described with those enticing employment highlights was an agent like Tony, not him.

Because of these, Tim unknowingly averted his eyes before they downcast.

Ziva saw his reaction and decided to help. When an idea hit her, she smiled slyly before retreating back to where she formerly was.

"Not all double-oh-seven?" Connor asked, feigning surprise. He earned no response, and it refreshed in him a satisfaction that he enjoyed having. "Still Geeky McGee, then. Well, you shouldn't feel so bad, buddy. On a different note, what are you doing inside Victoria's Secret?" He drew closer, a devious glance in his eyes. "Shopping for your mother again?"

Tim wanted to vanish into thin air when Connor laughed loudly again. As much as he desired some courage—even if it was minute—to come to him so that he could defend himself, the humiliation sentenced upon him immobilized any strength to.

"Oh, hot stuff."

Both men turned to the source of the call. Tim reddened when he saw Ziva drawing closer to him, a scheming expression on her face. Connor's eyebrows hitched upon the sight of the beautiful woman.

"Do you like this one?"—Ziva held an alluring black babydoll on her torso—"Or this one?" She then switched it with a lacy lavender sleepwear—or at least, with its shortness, what _resembled_ one. She pressed closer to Tim's side. "Which one do _you_ prefer?" she whispered to his ear, but it was loud enough for the bully to hear.

"And who, if I may ask, are you, pretty miss?" Connor asked.

Ziva eyed him briefly, sizing him up. "Ziva," she answered. "Mrs. Ziva McGee."

"This is your wife, Geeky McGee?" Connor frowned at Tim.

Tim looked at Ziva, a bit stunned. He did not know what she had in mind, but he decided to play along. "Y-yes," he replied. "She is."

"Huh," was the only thing Connor managed to utter as he observed the 'couple' with skepticism. "Where'd you catch a woman like her?"

"I met her. . .at work," Tim responded.

Connor chuckled. "Ah. She's a tech person like you. Well, as they say, birds of the same feather flock to—"

"I'm a Mossad officer when I met him," Ziva corrected him.

"A Mossad officer? What's a Mossad?" Connor made fun of what he thought was a lie.

"You do not know? Hmm. I did not think you did," Ziva shook her head, regarding him with pity.

"Mossad is the Secret Service of Israel, Connor," Tim could not help but smile.

"Spitfire of a chick, huh?" Connor said.

"Very smart, too," Tim added. "She can speak various languages, I should tell you. Not to mention, she's very skilled. Greatest woman you'd ever meet."

Ziva giggled. "Oh, you flatter me, hot stuff," she playfully hit him with the garments in her hands.

Connor crossed his arms, growing irritated of how things were turning out. "So what attracted you to a loser like Geeky McGee?" he asked testily.

"He is handsome, for one," Ziva smirked at Tim. "And smart, and adorable, and nice, sweet—"

"Kiss him."

"What?" they asked in unison.

"I said, kiss him," Connor repeated, pleased with the surprised response he got. "You're his wife, right? Kissing him shouldn't that be that much of a problem. Unless, of course, you're frauds."

"If you're forgetting, Connor, we're at the mall," Tim nervously explained, uncomfortable with the idea. The bully could see his uneasiness, propelling him to smile victoriously.

Ziva, however, was not one to back down.

"Other people might not be pleased with—"

"You got it," Ziva said. She pulled Tim by the collar, and then she gently pressed her lips into his. She could feel that Tim was surprised by the action, but it did not take long for him to kiss her back.

Seeing that he had nothing else he could belittle Tim with, Connor tightened his jaws, muttered a defeated "Whatever," and then walked away.

Both Tim and Ziva were dizzy by the time they broke off their kiss. "That. . .That was. . . We could have gotten arrested with that, Ziva," Tim said when he finally caught his breath. "I don't think everyone appreciated that little show."

"Some of them did," Ziva gestured to the women inside the store, all of who were gazing at both of them with awe. However, they resumed their buying when they saw that the two acknowledged that they were being watched. Ziva chuckled.

"You know, you could have shown him our rings," Tim said. "That would have been enough."

"But the kiss added a little more flair to it, don't you think so?" Ziva asked. "I probably should go put this back before they think I am stealing these," she waved the garments in her possession, and then headed back to the appropriate section of the store.

"Ziva?"

"Yes?"

"Thank you, baby," Tim smiled. "I appreciate that."

"There is nothing to thank me for," Ziva replied. "I only told him the truth."

Tim grinned. "But you know that I'm still staying with you, right?"

Ziva rolled her eyes. "Of course, honey," she said, smiling as she fidgeted with the gold ring on her finger. "Of course."

* * *

**Reviews are appreciated! **


End file.
